RODRIGUEZ, RIZAL — Cignal survived a stiff challenge from Nxled, eking out a thrilling five-set victory, 25-21, 23-25, 20-25, 25-15, 16-14, in the 2025 Premier Volleyball League Reinforced Conference on Saturday at the Ynares Center Montalban here.
The win gave debuting Slovak import Katrin Trebichavská a memorable first outing.
Trebichavská came off the bench in the first two sets before starting the next three. And she paired seamlessly with birthday girl Erika Santos to help the Super Spikers notch back-to-back wins and improve their Pool A record to 2-2.
The 25-year-old reinforcement tallied 21 points on 17 attacks, three aces, and one block, along with 10 excellent digs and seven excellent receptions. Santos, the PVL On Tour MVP, also finished with 21 points on 19 attacks, one block, and one ace.
Cignal overcame a mid-game slump, dropping the second and third sets after a strong start, before regrouping to take the final two sets. They fended off the Chameleons, who played without star Vanie Gandler for a third straight game due to an undisclosed injury.
(C) PVL Images
“Sobrang happy, of course kasi panalo,” said Super Spikers head coach Shaq delos Santos. “[A] win is a win pa rin kahit na five sets ‘yan. And that’s our goal.
“Kailangan makakuha ulit kami ng panalo. We’re so happy and proud sa team namin, especially kay Erika, birthday girl — and of course, with the help of our new import,” he added, referring to Santos and Trebichavská, who replaced Greek spiker Eva Chantava.
Cignal’s comeback teetered on the edge in the final frame when Chiara Permentilla and guest player Paola Martinez sparked a 3-0 run, giving Nxled an 11-8 lead. But with the game slipping away, Trebichavská, Tin Tiamzon, and Santos rose to the occasion, mounting a 4-1 counter to tie the score at 12-all.
Martinez and Santos exchanged powerful blows, and Martinez later blasted a cross-court hit to put Nxled at match point, 14-13.But just when the Chameleons seemed poised for victory, Cignal turned the tide.
Trebichavská scored a clutch hit, before Martinez committed a costly attack error. Rose Doria-Aquino sealed the hard-fought win with a game-ending joust after two hours and 16 minutes of action.
“I, obviously, I’m super glad that we won. And it was, for me…it was a rough performance. And I hope I can just help the team more in the future,” said Trebichavská, who had just arrived three days earlier and was still jet-lagged after more than 30 hours of travel.
Ishie Lalongisip joined the Super Spikers’ double-digit scorers with 11 points, while middle blockers Doria-Aquino and Jackie Acuña contributed nine points each.
Setter Gel Cayuna orchestrated the offense with 29 excellent sets and six points. Veteran libero Dawn Catindig excelled on defense with 17 excellent digs and nine excellent receptions.
Cignal will aim for a third consecutive win to close the opening round against Capital1 on Friday at 1:30 PM at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
(C) PVL Images
Nxled, meanwhile, fell to its fourth straight loss, remaining at the bottom of Pool A with a 0-4 record. Martinez led the charge with 38 points on 34 attacks and four blocks, but her performance wasn’t enough to lift the team.
Team captain Permentilla added 16 points on 12 attacks, three kill blocks, and one ace, along with 17 excellent receptions. Meanwhile, fourth overall pick Lyann De Guzman contributed 12 points, 15 excellent digs, and 13 excellent receptions in the loss.
Jaja Maraguinot delivered 28 excellent sets, and Rachel Jorvina recorded 16 excellent digs.
The Chameleons will seek a confidence-boosting win against PLDT on Friday at 6:30 PM before advancing to Pool C in the next round.
